Tagged: news

At the beginning of the year it looked like 2014 was shaping up to be a year when Small Data moved out of the shadows and into the mainstream (or maybe even THE Year of Small Data as I predicted in this op-ed for ZDNet). Judging by the volume of articles, social chatter, and casual conversation I’ve had at numerous industry events, Small Data has arrived. But it still means different things to different people. And that’s cool, since there’s a lot we’ve learned over the past couple years about why it’s important – not only as an alternative to Big Data – but also as a design philosophy and movement that shifts the conversation from processing power…to people!

So if you’re new to the topic, or just curious how Small Data has grown up, I’ve collected my “Top 10” articles for sampling the early concepts as well as the latest thinking. There are many more pieces I’ve left off, but this might serve as a core reading list. And yes, I’ve included just 2 of my own articles, but if you like them you can find many more on this blog or on the Actuate buzz page.

Enjoy!

The Early Days – Foundations

Forget Big Data, Small Data is the Real Revolution – Rufus Pollock’s (@rufuspollock) original post on the power of Small Data, collaboration and “decentralized data wrangling” from April 2013. Consistently one of the top 5 most cited pieces on the topic, it’s a great companion to my Forbes piece below.

These Smart, Social Apps Bring Big Data Down to Size – my piece with Mark Fidelman (@markfidelman) from October 2012 that introduced the pillars of small data design: make it simple, be smart, think mobile (be responsive) and predicted a new wave of user-centric business intelligence.

Focus on data value, not its ‘bigness’ – one of my recent op-eds on data value, decentralization and the new CRM. Good overview piece if you want to get a high level perspective and stir up thinking within your own organization.

I started programming in 1980. In 1990 I finished my master’s degree focusing on machine learning. In 2000 I spent a year at McKinsey developing economic models for online advertising. In 2010 I co-founded Offerpop, which is now the leading social marketing platform for Facebook and Twitter.

You could say I have been around data, and data processing, and data analytics all my life! But I’ve never seen the changes – and opportunities – I’m seeing today.

With 1 billion smartphones shipping each year, the potential of big data analytics, the Internet of Things ramping up, and wearable devices like Glass and Nike Fuelband in the public eye, we have in front of us seemingly limitless options for generating, sharing, and displaying our data. Meanwhile, as my former colleague Dr. Tim Walters has artfully described: “Ubiquity negates scarcity.” In other words, the connected consumer (not their bank, or favorite retailer, or media outlet) calls the shots in this post-digital world. And those brands and service providers who are most responsive, and engaging, and useful to the connected consumer are going to clean up.

How? It’s all about data of course. Or more specifically about providing compelling data-enriched experiences that bring the power of big data to everyday tasks. These are the charting tools that E*TRADE provides that make an amateur investor feel like they can compete with the pros. Or Kayak’s awesome “When to Book” tool that lets you know if it’s the best time to purchase your airline ticket.

They are apps that present just the right information, on the channel of choice, at the right time. And even seem like “magic” because they anticipate your needs or make it super-easy to discover or share new insights. They are simple, smart, responsive, and social too – following the core principles of the small data design philosophy.

While there are already some excellent early examples, turning this theory into (broad) practice and fully understanding and mapping out the blueprint for tomorrow’s customer facing applications provides a compelling (and potentially lucrative) challenge – and requires the right partner.

A new challenge, a new role

Today I’m excited to announce that I’ve joined Actuate as their new VP of product marketing & innovation to move forward many of the ideas I’ve shared here on this blog and tackle the challenge above (with a lot of helpers!). Why Actuate? To be able to work with the team who literally invented enterprise reporting and reinvented it with BIRT, and have access to a super-smart technical group and community of 3M developers offers a “test bed” for some of my ideas I could only dream of. Plus there’s a great story forming around Actuate’s 3 new business units, an executive team I’ve known and trust (for almost 20 years), and a marketing team with the resources in place to build something special.

What’s on my plate for the first few months? In addition to exploring ways to drive market awareness for the company’s BIRT Analytics offering, I’ll be leading the design of a new company-wide content marketing “hub” concept that leverages my work in this area over the past few years, and will be working my industry contacts for new research partnerships and growth opportunities as well.

Oh, I’ll still be writing, speaking, and spreading the word about the power of small data and personalized analytics. And I also plan to expand the content (more posts!) and contributor roster right here to leverage Small Data Group’s position as the top ranked site for “small data” on Google.

As always I truly appreciate everyone’s feedback, encouragement, and support!